Colliding Synergy
by LoveInChains
Summary: Sequel to Eternal Synergy: After burrowing herself into an emotionless hole, a certain grumpy mutant manages to find Maxine Dugan-Fuller and convince her to help him save - well - everything. Save the world, save the future, and save Raven. She'll reunite with Hank, confront Charles, and hopefully, in the midst of a world gone crazy, learn to live again. Hank/OC, slight Raven/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Colliding Synergy**

"_When I talk to people in need, they tell me they want to hope; they are eager for opportunity; they are ready for better days. And I can tell you that every time their hopes are disappointed, all nations lose._" - Abdallah II

* * *

There's just a point in your life when you just -

Stop.

You stop trying, you stop caring, and, to a degree, you stop living altogether. No matter what you do, you fail. You try to stand and you're simply struck back down again. And again, and again. You try to speak up and you're immediately silenced. You feel like there isn't anything you can do. _It's hopeless,_ you tell yourself. _It'd be better if I didn't care at all, _you try to convince your mind, your heart. Your conscious, once loud and proud, helping you dictate whatever it is you needed to do, reduced to the small and meager sound of a common mouse, scurrying around in the back of your mind. You tell yourself there isn't anything you can do, and, eventually, you start to believe it.

As it neared 1974, I had done just that. It wasn't a sudden decision, but occurred gradually since I left the mansion and my brother's corpse behind. I tried my damnedest to keep going, to find a reason to fight, there just wasn't one. I lost Collin due to complications with his amputated leg in 1967, lost Devin to the war a year later, lost what little humanity I had left soon after that, and I almost lost Raven to madman seeking to wipe out the mutant race. _That's _the reason I found to keep fighting. To save the last good thing in my life.

I was approached in early January by one James Howlett, a mutant with the innate ability to force out three long bones in his arms through his hands, effectively making a pair of claws about eight inches long, to save Raven. To stop her from killing a man that deserved to be dead and prevent his company and the government from acquiring the one thing that could bring about the extinction of the mutant race. A machine that adapts to defeat whatever they're faced with paired with the ability to sniff out the anomaly in our genetic code. They could sense mutants _and _obliterate them.

And, oddly enough, I didn't care about that at all. All I cared about was saving Raven from the torture that would eventually produce the mechanics behind the "Sentinels". I'd already went through something similar, and that's something I wouldn't wish unto anyone. Not even assholes that deserved it. Inhumane experimentation is _never _worth the cost. Look at what it did to Gabe. He wasn't fixable and I didn't want to watch Raven turn into that as well. That beautiful smile, replaced with a look that makes everyone aware to how much she'd been through, her warm affections, turned cold by the pain she was forced to endure. Never. _Never_. Raven would never experience that if I could help it.

James, or Logan, as he liked to be called, managed to convince me to join him with only a few words. I don't think he knew about my affinity for Raven, nor did he need to. I didn't want him prying around in my private life, though there was a need for it. Especially when he said that he'd be going to fetch Charles next. To say that I almost evacuated the vehicle while it was still in motion is _not_ an understatement. I almost kicked out the door halfway down the interstate just to get away from him. Help Raven? Wonderful. Deal with that prick again? Never.

Eventually he calmed me down enough to convince me to go along with it. Apparently, in his future, or whatever, Charles (or I) neglected to mention our bloodied past. We weren't exactly friends, but we weren't hostile towards each other. I actually got along better with Erik in the future, according to him. You can't blame a girl for laughing, which I did. For about, five minutes. It'd been a long time since I laughed like that. I could never get along with Erik so long as he kept up that mutant supremacist attitude. At least, that's what I originally thought. But I wasn't going to believe it until I witnessed it with my own two eyes.

We drove to New York and I let Logan fill me in on what was happening in the future. Everything really starts going to shit in 2014 with the Sentinels, according to the rest of the world. He said that mutant life started going nuts 14 years before that. Starting with Erik attempting to turn every diplomat in America into a human mutate, like me. Yeah, that _really _made me want to be friends with the overly dramatic German. Then some asshole named Striker attempted to turn mutants into his little pet army, fun fun. He didn't elaborate further beyond that, the look on his face got a little pained so I assumed it wasn't a good topic.

"What happened between you and Charles? He said you were friends when he was young." Logan asked suddenly, giving me a bit of a side-sneer. I don't think he was actually sneering. That's just his face.

I shrugged, fiddling with a Cat's Cradle I'd kept with me as of late, helped distract me from what happened. "We were, for a while. Things change, I guess."

"I know a load of bullshit when I hear it." He continued with that dry tone of his.

"Because it's usually coming out of your own mouth?"

Now, most intelligent people wouldn't cross Logan, they really wouldn't. I don't think I meet the level of "intelligent" though, so this statement is mostly irrelevant. He's got this nasty glare that makes you question every little thing that bursts from your idiotic face. Well, maybe someone else. I legit didn't care.

"Sometimes." He admitted, not really offended or insulted by what I said. "Maybe it'd be more accurate to say that I know when there's more to a story than what you're saying."

I sighed, waving him off flippantly. "It was nothing, just a bit of deception, betrayal, murder. Charles and me? We're something straight out of a Shakespearean play."

He arched a brow at me. "Feel free to elaborate?"

I shook my head, returning to the Cradle. "Nope. Charles can tell you in the future if he wants."

"Alright by me." He finished, adjusting his sunglasses and shutting his trap until we showed up at the Palace.

While we drove, I got to think about how my whole life had changed. How much it truly sucked. And every time I almost forgot that, the universe kindly decided to remind me. Usually with a thorough kick to the face. With _cleats_. Who doesn't love the feeling of spikes embedding themselves into their face. If my stay in an unethical and borderline torturous research facility when I was just in grade school wasn't proof of how much my life blew, how about strangling the life out of my own baby brother? And now I have to save the present as well as the future.

Remind me to thank the universe sometimes around, well, never.


	2. Chapter 2

**Colliding Synergy**

"_Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead. We must therefore accept it without complaint when they sometimes collide with a bit of reality against which they are dashed to pieces._" - Sigmund Freud

* * *

The rest of the road trip wasn't a very long one. It was a silent one, for sure, but I didn't care much either way. Logan wasn't much of a talker and I wasn't in the mood to say anything more than I already had. I definitely didn't need a guy I didn't know prying into my past. Besides, I had a feeling that he already knew about it? At least to some degree, he did, he had to if he claimed that he knew me like he did. We fought crime for about a whole decade together, fought for mutants and all that, lived at the Palace and stopped Erik from taking dump all over everything, I just hadn't experienced it yet.

When we pulled up to the Palace, I decided to stay put in the car until it was absolutely necessary to cross back into that life all over again. The place looked a bit more decrepit than I last saw it. Served it right since it'd been used as a murdering ground for my deranged brother only five - _six _years ago. Sorry, I lost some time between then and now. I've been a year off ever since. But - staring up at the place I'd called home for months left in almost ruin, I felt a little nostalgic. The times I would spot Alex in the weight room, when I'd catch Sean sneaking in through the wrong window in the middle of the night, and when Raven and I would sneak down to the kitchen to steal a midnight snack. There were some good times while I stayed at the Palace, I couldn't deny that.

I looked up to see Logan finally reach the front door where Hank greeted him, and I felt a little ashamed for how little I reacted to seeing him again. He looked just the same, a bit older - sure, but still my little Einstein nevertheless. They spoke for a bit, until it looked like Hank was going to keep Logan out, and Logan didn't seem like the sort of guy you just kick out of your house. I didn't bother with those two after that, I simply sunk down in my seat and I pulled out a magazine I got from the glove compartment.

That's when I realized that Hank looked like 1962 pre-serum Hank. By the time I caught this and looked up again, Logan had muscled his way in and I'm pretty sure I saw Hank scurrying to get out of his way. Poor thing, but I still wasn't ready to jump back into the spirit so I stayed put. I was too busy wondering how in God's name Hank managed to pull off his old appearance because last I heard he hadn't actually gained Raven's powers, he was just subjected to it. Whatever happened, I just hoped that it was his own doing.

Suddenly, I heard a muffled _crash _and _thud _inside so I took that as my cue to get off my ass and assist my new friend in the negotiations with Charles. I emerged from the car and walked towards the open doorway when I thought I heard Logan screaming. Pushing my way in, I was ready to put up a fight, when I saw a furry blue Hank emerge from the left stairwell all the way to the right one. Being more than a little bit confused as to how Hank went from the Hank I met to the Hank I talked off a ledge, I didn't move until he'd dug his claws into Logan's jacket and had tossed him onto the table in the entryway. He leapt across the room, clinging on the chandelier when I called out to him.

"Hank, no need for violence, alright?" I tried to soothe him, approaching him slowly.

He was upside down, looking down at me in shock, almost. His feral features softened greatly until I was looking into the doe-eyes of a man I love.

"There we go, much better." I cooed.

"Max?" He barely audited, scanning my features to be sure that I was, indeed, the undeniable Synergy.

I couldn't help but smile at him, leaning in to give him a quick kiss to the cheek. "The one and only."

"What's going on here?"

The sound of a voice belonging to a man I hated with every fiber of my being almost caused me to lose what little cool I had left. He was descending the stairs, with fully functioning legs, no less, the tie to his robe trailing behind him. His hair was considerably longer than I remembered, and he looked a little worse for wear. I took a cautious step away from Hank, crossing my arms and counting the seconds before _he _recognized me and I'd have to control the urge to punch his lights out. His slippered feet came to a soft halt at the landing, first looking to Hank, dangling upside down from the chandelier, then to Logan, looking helpless on the table, and then to me. His eyes widened considerably, looking at me like I was some sort of marvel. Well, me being there was pretty close to a miracle at that point.

"Maxine, wh-what are you doing here?" He stammered only slightly, his ironclad composure shaken.

I waved him off, not wanting to engage him more than was entirely necessary. "I'm here with the dead fish on the table."

Logan snorted quietly, lifting his head only slightly. "I'm not dead yet."

He had a point. "No, but you might've been had I known you were going to attack my ex-boyfriend like that."

"What in -" _He _started, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What is going on here?"

"This is the professor?" Logan asked, looking up at me until I nodded in the affirmative.

"That's him, Charles Xavier."

Charles shook his head. "And no longer a professor, for goodness - get off the bloody chandelier, Hank."

After giving the asshole a look that seemed to say he didn't like being told what to do, Hank threw himself sideways, flipping until he landed on his feet. Once he'd righted himself, he made his way over to me, gravitating towards me like 11 years hadn't passed since I stole a kiss from him at the Peppermint Lounge. God, that was a lifetime ago, and me and him? Hank and I still fit like a glove.

"You can walk?" Logan said suddenly, causing a bold Hank (who'd been reaching to hold my hand) to pin his arms to his side.

Charles, seeming more drunk than sober with a scotch in his hand, continued down the steps. "You're a perceptive one, aren't you?"

I couldn't help but scoff. "Yeah, it's quite perceptive that you couldn't walk last I was here, and now you're all hunky-dory."

He gave me a pained expression. "I got better."

"Bullshit." I proclaimed, but not really bothering to continue the subject.

He sighed. "No matter, despite your perceptive talents you failed to notice the sign at the front gate. This is private property, my friend, I'm going to have ask - him, to ask you to leave."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't do that." Logan protested, standing up from the table and stretching out his back. "Because, uh, because I was sent here for you."

"Well tell whoever it was that sent you that I'm - busy!" Charles continued to deflect.

I snorted, nodding to the drink in his hand. "Busy getting hammered. You've really come down in the world, Charles."

"Forgive me for actually taking what happened to you and your brother to -" He started, seeming quite irritated with me. "I'm not going to argue with you, Maxine, if that's what you want."

I shook my head. "No, I'm here with this guy to deliver a message."

"Then bloody get on with it!" He proclaimed, throwing his free hand up in the air and leaning back on the steps.

"Well, the people who sent me here, we need your help." Logan sort of lied, he definitely wasn't telling him the whole truth.

"In Charles's defense," I started, snickering quietly to myself, "he's probably not in any position to help anyone with beer staining his shirt."

Charles lowered me a look that told me he wasn't amused by my correct assumption. "That's right, I'm not. So, I repeat, tell whoever it was that sent you that I'm bloody busy."

"That's going to be hard, because the person who sent me..." Logan paused, all cryptic and shit, "was you."

The professor took pause in that. "What."

Seeming that it was entirely appropriate, Logan pressed on. "About 50 years from now."

"50 years from now like in the future, 50 years from now?" Charles asked, about as confused as I was from Logan first approached me in that bar.

"Yeah."

"I sent you, from the future."

"Yeah, both you and Max sent me."

"Piss off."

Logan didn't look defeated, in fact, he looked like he was entirely in control of this whole situation. "If you had your powers you'd know I was telling the truth."

"How do you know I don't have my pow-" Charles started before puttering off.

"Wait, what?" I asked. "Charles, what did you do to yourself?"

He shook his head, gulping back some of his drink. "N-nothing. It doesn't concern you, _either _of you." He turned to look back at Logan. "Who are you, anyway?"

"I told you." He replied.

"Are you CIA?" Charles continued.

"No."

He wasn't happy with that answer. "You've been watching me?"

Logan started stepping around the table, looking Charles dead in the eye. "I know you, Charles. I know Max, and I know Hank. We've been friends for years. I know your powers came when you were nine, I know you thought you were going crazy when it started - all the voices in your head. And it wasn't until you were 12 that you realized all the voices were in everyone else's head." He paused briefly. "Do you want me to go on?"

Charles shook his head. "I-I never told anyone that."

"Not yet, no, but - you will." Logan clarified, looking a bit more sentimental than I thought the guy could get.

Now Charles? He finally seemed to buy into the whole ordeal. Took much longer to convince him than it took to convince me. Then again, if I was a telepath and I was suddenly - not a telepath or whatever happened to Charles, I would be very thorough before I believed anything _anyone _told me. As a precaution. Being so sure of everyone around me and then suddenly drawing a blank? Had to be a little bit unnerving.

"Alright, you've piqued my interest." Charles admitted. "What do you want?"

"We need to stop Raven, Charles." I told him, uncrossing my arms and approaching him slowly. "And you know, if I agreed to come back here to this house of horrors with this SOB, then Raven's in real danger. I wouldn't be here if that wasn't the case."

That seemed to sway Charles over to our side a little bit further, because it was true.

"We need your help." Logan continued.

Even though he looked like he was inching away from the safety of his home to come help us, the pained expression on Charles's face told me that he still wouldn't come easily. We were throwing a lot at him. He started to stand, started to retreat back into whatever hovel he crawled out of.

"I think I'd like to wake up now." He said, descending the stairs and heading into his office, a bit messier than I remembered.

Logan looked defeated, turning around and rubbing the back of his neck. Hank, on the other hand, finally joined the conversation, looking down at me as his blue skin started to return to the pinkish more-human tone I'd seen not minutes ago.

"What's Raven got to do with this?" He asked me quietly.

I sighed, looking back at Charles and debating whether or not to do this on my own. "Everything."

* * *

**Author's Note: Sorry about the delay! I'm full throttle on _Colliding Synergy_, though, if you've any interest in reading about Gabe, I suggest you go read _Eternal Ghost!_ It's a bit lengthy, but it's about Gabe before he ran into Max in 1967. xoxo, Momma Love**


	3. Chapter 3

**Colliding Synergy**

"_Over the past few years, the road to confrontation has shown its consequences: loss of innocent lives, destruction and fear. Most costly, however, was the loss of hope._" - King Abdullah II

* * *

Eventually we'd convince Charles to help us. It was a long and arduous path, consisting of lots of swearing, recognition of each other, and an overall feeling of doom and gloom that I did my best to ignore. There was talk of war, of souls, I wasn't really listening, but then we got onto the subject of Erik, and that seemed to change Charles's tune. Despite where Erik was and what he'd done. Revealing that we needed Erik, though, that got a lot of laughs out of Charles. Then there was some inspirational crap about not turning your back on someone who lost their path, and then there was more swearing and violence and wallowing in self pity and some monologuing from Hank and, like I said, eventually we got Charles along for the ride. I'm bypassing all the emotional shit because I don't really want to sympathize with him.

I mean, drugs, the war, that's it? Forgive me for not feeling too sentimental, but it could've been a whole lot worse. And I honestly don't give a shit.

While this whole thing was going down, I wasn't even in the same room. I separated from the pack mostly because I knew that my "convince people to do things" skills were subpar at best. So I took the liberty to wander about the place. Not much had changed in six years, same old Elizabethan mansion that made me feel a bit like British royalty to simply be standing on the property. There was still the same old potpourri pots littered everywhere, a tradition Raven started however many years ago, the same weird paintings that Madame Marko nee Xavier collected, the same old suits of armor guarding the hallways, same old everything, same old Palace. As I walked down a corridor I dusted my fingers across the old paneling, smirking to myself when I passed a secret passageway. One day, when Sean wasn't stoned or getting beat up by Erik, we spent hours trying to uncover all of the secrets of the Palace. I personally don't think that we even came close.

There were a few things that'd changed, the place looked more lived in than it had when it was only just us big kids hangin' about. Felt more - alive. Children had lived here, running through the halls, some blipping out of existence only to appear a ways down the hallway with a playful grin on their face. Their energy was practically soaked into the woodwork, and it made me smile. Kids are great. They just made everything - great. I peered into one of the rooms - I think it was Alison's - but now there were several bunk beds, all made, nice and neat, stacked against the far wall. _This really was a school_. I walked over to one of the bedside tables and picked up a book that was left there. Brother's Grimm. _Not a cheery sort, wonder who this belonged to?_

"Hey."

I looked over my shoulder, it was Hank. He was standing in the doorway being a little fidgety, watching me roam around like he was almost afraid of me. I smiled, setting down the book and sitting on one of the beds, beckoning him over before his nervousness could get the better of him and he ran for the hills.

He quickly crossed the room, straightening his sleeves before sitting beside me. We stayed like that for a while, him sitting pin-straight, me staring at the wall across from us, weren't we a pair. Both avoiding the elephant in the room by a mile. Several times I felt him stealing a glance, but it never lasted. Of course I just wanted to talk to him, wanted to ask how he was, how life's been for him, but I couldn't get it out. There were so many unknowns. I had no idea how to act, I'd already thrown out an "ex-boyfriend" comment earlier and I wasn't sure how he took it. It's not something I really want to ask a person.

"Max, I-I-" He started, staring down at his twiddling thumbs.

I reached over and clasped his hands in mine. "Hey, take your time."

He cast me a thankful gaze, bouncing his knee like he used to do when his nerves were in hyperdrive. "A-are you okay?"

I gave him an incredulous look. "What do you mean?"

He shrugged slightly. "You went through a lot last time was here and you just - you seem different, is all."

With a chuckle I leaned back on my elbows. "It's a been a crazy few years, Hank. Can't say that doesn't change a girl, but it's nothing I can't handle."

"What happened, if I may ask? While you were away?"

I shrugged. "A lot of stuff. I stayed with Raven for a while, then I took a very long road trip around the world. You know how easy it is to travel when you can move at the speed of light?"

He offered me a slight smile before his face fell. "Max, you know that's not what I'm asking."

_Shit, Hank, please don't go there._

"What happened to give you those scars?" He asked, looking down at my wrists.

I tugged down my sleeves and shook him off. "It's no big deal, Hank. I can handle a couple of scars, alright?"

Now, one thing I'll always hate about my on-again off-again boyfriend, is that he could always see beneath the surface. Those kind eyes of his spoke volumes as he gazed down at me like something was paining him. And that thing, more often than not, was me. I couldn't look at him for long before I turned away.

"Don't look at me like that." I groaned. "I'm fine, nothing wrong here. I've still got the skin on my back."

His concern never wavered. "We both know that by the time you tell us what's wrong, it's far too late."

I couldn't help but snort. "It's been far too late for far too long, honey. No need to get your panties in a bunch because of it."

"Max -"

"Look, Hank." I started, standing up and looking down at him. "I'm a big girl, and I'm over it. You know I'm not one for this emotional shit, so let's just drop it. Alright?"

God, he looked hurt. In the past, him and Raven would be the only two people I would talk to honestly about this crap. They knew everything about me. But now, I didn't talk to anyone. It cost too much to trust people, to rely on them, and I learned that the hard way. It was a lesson I didn't want to go through ever again. Even if that meant spending the rest of my life on my own.

"Hank -" I sighed laboriously, realizing how shitty I sounded. "Maybe later, alright? We have a future to save, don't we?"

He nodded, adjusting his glasses, standing and practically running from the room. A blind man could see that I hurt him, it was just something that I did on the regular these days. I stayed in the middle of that room, wondering how in the world I was going to fix this mess I put myself into. I didn't want to snap at Hank, I didn't want him to hate me, I didn't want to hurt him, but I just couldn't help it. Nothing in my life went as planned, I've figured this out. Such an innocent interaction was something 17 year old me wouldn't've fucked up like I just did.

Funny, Logan came back to fix the past. It made me wonder if I could do the same thing. Go back, fix Gabe, prevent my whole childhood from happening, kill Shaw, do _something _to stop my life from going down this path. Preventing my life from turning into this repetitive "shit hitting the fan" stream of events. I chuckled into my hand, realizing it was completely pointless to think like that. My life was beyond my control, and I think I somehow always knew it.

"Hey, you gonna come help or should I come back after the world's ended?"

I didn't need to look up, I knew who it was. It was my new best friend.

"Shut up, Logan. I'm coming." I groaned, popping up my collar and meeting him at the doorway. "Charles is completely on board, I take it?"

He nodded. "Yeah, you want to be there to plan the prison break?"

I shook my head. "Why bother, I'm just a grunt. This brain wasn't meant to retain information."

That got a bit of a laugh out of him. "Now that's something I believe."

I shoved his shoulder and started down the hallway. "C'mon, old man, get your ass in gear. Or should I come back after the world's ended?"

* * *

**Author's Note: Again, sorry for the delay! I'm really bad about this, lately. More to come soon, hopefully! xoxo, Momma Love**


	4. Chapter 4

**Colliding Synergy**

"_We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and the future._" - Alvin Toffler

* * *

Breaking Erik out of the joint probably wasn't high up on my bucket list, or on it at all. The asshole could rot in there for all I cared. But I'm not the mastermind behind these sorts of plans, so I just went with the flow. Break Erik out, save the world. Seemed counter intuitive, but hey, I'd put the guy down if I ever felt him slipping back into his old ways. We were going to Washington to a) break Magnet Head out of the freaking Pentagon and b) recruit some mutant to help us do it. Some kid named Maximoff. According to Logan, him and I are going to be pretty good friends in the future. Which, again, I didn't really care about. I wanted to save Raven and that was the extent of my interest.

Driving there wasn't nearly as awkward as I thought it would be. Logan and I talked in the front, Charles and Hank mingled quietly in the back. Every now and then Hank or Charles would ask Logan something and I would quickly duck out of the conversation. It was easy since I convinced Logan to let me drive. There wasn't anything I wanted to discuss with those two. What happened to me during the years away from them was private. I'd locked it away and thrown away the key. There were times when I looked in the rear view mirror and made eye contact with Hank, but I didn't let him engage. Sorry, Hank. I wasn't ready yet.

"I think we're here." I decided to announce when I saw a mailbox labelled "Maximoff" in the distance.

Logan nodded. "Yeah, this is it."

"I told you I'm not an awful driver." I chuckled after pulling to a stop and I tossed the keys over to him.

"Next time I'm driving, alright." He countered. "Don't get used to it."

I gave him my cheekiest smirk. "That's what you think."

As we all exited the vehicle, Logan was shaking his head in disbelief. And as we approached the front door of the Maximoff residence I could've sworn that I saw something zip out from behind the house and quickly zip back. When Mrs Maximoff opened the door I was grinning like an idiot to myself. _Maybe I'll like this kid after all_.

"What's he done now?" She asked with a completely exasperated tone. "I'll just write you a check for whatever he took."

"We just need to talk to him." Logan assured her.

She almost sighed before shouting over her shoulder, "Peter! The cops are here. Again."

"I can see why I'd be friends with this guy." I whispered to Logan with a quiet snicker.

He gave me a quick look. "Yeah, you both were a real pain in my ass."

I patted him on the back as we stepped into the house and followed Mrs Maximoff until she showed us to the basement, then she left us to it. Descending the steps, I could hear people playing ping pong, and when I saw that it was just Peter playing by himself, I couldn't help but laugh. Fast little devil was moving quick enough to be his own opponent. Not to mention we were surrounded by enough merchandise for me to realize that he really must've been local law enforcement's best friend. Apparently he was putting those quick feet of his to - would it be inappropriate to call it _good _use?

"What do you guys want?" He asked mid-ping pong session.

"Mind if I snag some of these ding dongs?" I smirked as I looked over his trove of stolen goodies.

"Help yourself!" He exclaimed without missing a beat. "But I didn't do anything, I've been here all day."

As he finished defending himself, albeit rather poorly, he suddenly appeared on the couch behind us. Not that I really noticed, I was too busy enjoying some delicious ding dongs. This kid was more my style than the rest of these old men. He reminded me of my brothers, and of the guys I used to terrorize my hometown with.

"Just - relax, Peter." Logan started. "We're not cops."

_We don't even look like cops. _I retorted to myself.

"Of course you're not cops if you were cops you wouldn't be driving a rental car." Peter said rather quickly.

Charles didn't seem to grasp what Peter's mutation actually was. "How did know we've got a rental car?"

"Because he zipped past us when we arrived." I retorted from the ping pong table.

"And you were able to see him?" Logan asked in disbelief.

I winked at him. "I'm a bit more observant than the rest of you, evidently. And I don't even have a college degree."

Peter suddenly got this big grin on his face, hands resting behind his head. "I like her she's quick and not stupid. I checked your registration while you were walking to the door. I also had some time to kill so I checked your rental agreement, saw that you're from out of town. Are you FBI?"

Before they even had a chance to respond, Peter was gone and picking through our pockets. He checked my New Mexico ID and gave me a weird look.

"You're not 30, are you?" He asked, clearly confused. "There's no way you're almost 30, you're way too hot for 30."

I shook my head. "Nope, I was dead for five years. Not even 25."

"Nice." He smiled, zipping around and stopping at a table with someone's wallet in his hands. "Nope, you're not cops. What's with this gifted youngester's place?"

"That's an -" Charles nearly groaned, picking up his wallet and card seeing as Peter had just vanished again. "Old card."

"He's fascinating." Hank said with his usual scientific excitement.

But, of course, Charles didn't agree. "He's a pain in the ass."

I couldn't help but smirk and I patted him on the back. "You've got that in common. Let's hope he doesn't breed a psychopath like you did."

I'm glad Hank didn't catch that, I know how he gets when he's amazed by something. It still left Charles with that really guilty look on his face that I always had the pleasure of gracing him with. I'll admit, I was being a bit of a bitch, but he totally deserved it. But Hank, him with his single train of thought, it went right over his head. Truly nothing can distract him from it, so he was asking Logan what sort of mutant young Peter was.

"A teleporter?" He asked.

"No, he's just fast." Logan explained easily enough. "And when I knew him he wasn't so - young."

I snickered. "He's not that young. I was about his age when I was recruited to this little mutant shit show."

"Yeah, you guys are just old." Peter chimed in from behind them while finishing off a popsicle.

They all turned around to face him again. This was all very amusing for me. See, I can actually see things that average humans and even mutants can't. My ability to turn into electricity and therefore the capability to travel at the speed of light allows me to capture objects moving at such speeds. Of course I could only do this when I was light myself, otherwise I could vaguely see where Peter was going, even if I just caught a slight glimpse of him. It was still something, and it made me feel a little superior in this situation.

_Radiation for the win._

"So you're not afraid to show your powers?" Hank asked Peter innocently enough.

"Powers, what powers? What're you talking about?" He replied, playing dumb far better than I could, which still wasn't too good. "Do you see something strange here? Nothing anybody would believe if you told them."

With that, he was gone again. He was miraculously over at his pong machine playing a rather rapid game.

"I like this guy." I whispered to Logan.

He rolled his eyes. "Oh great, you can both be a pain in my ass that much sooner."

"So who are you, what do you want?" Peter asked, not taking his eyes off his game.

"We need your help, Peter." Logan explained.

"For what?"

I smirked. "Something that'll be a whole lot of fun, trust me."

Logan leveled me a look I totally ignored. "We need you to break into a highly secured facility and... get someone out."

"Prison break?" Peter questioned. "That's illegal, you know."

I chuckled into my hand. "You know that just makes it more fun."

"Where did they pick you up?" He probably asked me. "You're not stiff like them."

"Let's just say I still know how to have a good time." I smirked. "They've just forgotten how."

He was snickering but he returned all of his attention back to his game.

"Besides," Logan interrupted, "it's only illegal if you get caught."

"So what's in it for me?" Peter retorted.

Charles, evidently fed up with this conversation, said laboriously while rubbing his eye, "You, ya kleptomaniac get to break into the Pentagon."

That most certainly piqued Peter's interest. He put his game on hold and slowly turned around to face us. It was the first slow thing he'd done since I met him.

"How do I know I can trust you?"

Logan gave this little triumphant smirk. "Because we're just like you."

"Well." I countered. "Some of us are."

Charles locked eyes with me for a moment, almost pleading me to listen to him for once he said, "Show him."

With a compliant nod, I walked past the "Don't Walk / Walk" sign he'd stolen and I brushed my fingers against the neon letters. The electricity within was drawn into my fingertips as I pulled away, forming a ball of light in my palm, and I presented it to him. The second I'd shown it to him, I clenched my fist around it and absorbed it into my skin. The feeling caused me to shiver, always such a rush. And Peter was just sitting there grinning like an idiot.

Up next, was Logan. He just jutted his bones out of his skin and grimaced like he always did when he utilized his mutation.

"That - was awesome." Peter said, looking at me before turning to Logan. "That was cool, but it's disgusting."

I couldn't help it, I laughed. "Very true. So, are you in?"

"Definitely." He smirked. "But I'm going to have to get some stuff prepared."

Beside me, Charles nodded. "Understandable, when you're finished we'll be -"

"Done." Peter finished, backpack and goggles in tow. "What're we still doing here?"

Chuckling, I headed for the stairs. "Slowing you down, evidently!"

Heading back out to the car, Charles quickly explained to Mrs Maximoff that we'd be back with Peter shortly. She totally understood, probably still under the assumption that we were law enforcement, and we were on our way. The car was a bit cramped now, with Peter along for the ride, and he was doing a magnificent job irritating both Charles and Logan for the duration of our trip. He was definitely a much needed addition to the group. Made it feel more like the good old days. And, of course, I missed those dearly.

* * *

**Author's Note: Wow! Massive delay, but here I am! More Max, some Peter! Her and Quicksilver get along like peanut butter and jelly, so I'm excited for the Pentagon scene to play out. I know I don't deserve them, but dropping a review would totally make my day! Love you all!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Colliding Synergy**

"_Many have changed so much that they have lost the magic of the dream that carried them on their own bootstraps._" - Peter Abrahams

* * *

"So, what's the plan?"

That was a good question. How exactly were we going to break Erik freaking Lensherr out of the freaking Pentagon. Not even out of the Pentagon, he was practically buried beneath the structure in a concrete prison. That was perfect because it's not like Charles could just walk us right in there without a fuss. I'm perfectly capable of sneaking into a facility like this, but being in such close quarters to people puts them at risk for accidental electrocution. Sadly I wasn't as controlled with my powers as I am now, which makes sense, I still wasn't going to be much use in covert ops.

So, how in the hell were we going to pull this off, you ask?

Apparently, this was going to be very hit-or-miss. So, we were almost winging it. It all relied on Hank and me being able to reroute the security systems to start, that I totally had in the bag. As we walked through the halls of the Pentagon, Hank appearing to be the unassuming nerdy tourist, me the eager girlfriend of the tourist, and Charles and Logan pulling up the rear, our plan was officially in motion. Charles and Logan slipped away quietly enough, leaving Hank and me on our own, hand in hand.

"That hat makes you look ridiculous." I whispered to Hank as we walked.

Looking up at him, he was grinning. I know this wasn't really the time or the place, but it was simple stuff like this that made me really miss Hank. Of course I'd spent the last day with him - this was different. For half a second, it felt like we were almost as we once were. Two young kids, head over heels for each other, all while saving the world. The only difference now was that we weren't young and I'd pretty much burned that bridge already. Except the way he was squeezing my hand made me feel like there was some hope left for us, even if it was minuscule at best.

I wrapped my arm in his suddenly to signal the continuation of the plan. "Let's do our thing, Beast."

With a smirk, he pulled a broadcast scrambling device type thing that I'm still not quite sure what it is, and worked his wonderfully nerdy magic. Soon, Charles and Logan would be able to skulk around the halls of the Pentagon without being disturbed. And when that eventually failed, I'd be there as a backup system. I could fry the electrical systems at the drop of a pin. My control wasn't spectacular, but my power was enormous. All around us, agents were getting messages probably detailing the lack of security at the moment and to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.

"So." I asked, looking up at him. "What do we do now?"

He shrugged. "Sit and wait, don't look suspicious."

I chuckled into my hand. "There's nothing less suspicious than I guy wearing a fanny pack."

"Hey." He protested with a laugh. "I like my fanny pack."

"I prefer your actual fanny." I quietly teased with a quick pinch to his butt.

Blushing like crazy, he had to stifle a laugh. "Knock it off, Max, we're working!"

Nuzzling into his side, nothing ever felt quite as good. The simplicity of being with Hank was so intoxicating that I just couldn't help it. This simple man, easy to excite, impossible to ignore, if he could get me to forget about my shitty life for even a minute, then I was a fool for ever trying to push him away. Besides, I loved him. I still do. First loves are hard to shake, probably impossible.

Looking around us, I wasn't exactly thinking about the job at hand. "So, we don't need to keep walking, do we?"

"Staying with the group will keep us from appearing suspicious." He leaned down to say quietly.

I smirked. "That's not the only way to stay under the radar."

Keeping up with my mischievous ploy, I found a mostly secluded hallway and pulled him into it. He seemed a bit confused, he had that cute bewildered look on, and it continued even as I yanked off his silly little hat. I pressed my back against a wall and snuck my hands into the waistline of his jeans, pulling him flush against me. At that point, there was a look of clarity on his face, but he wasn't sold quite yet. Rolling my eyes, I took his face in my hands and kissed him tenderly, once, twice, three times, until I let him go and practically fluttered my eyelashes up at him.

"C'mon, Hank." I almost purred. "Our part of the mission is done with. Let's have a little fun while we wait."

Still, he was hesitant. Hank will always be like that, calculating every move, every nuance, overthinking every word out of my mouth, it's part of his charm. Eventually though, giving into my womanly wiles, obviously, he looked over his shoulder to check if anyone was watching, and then leaned down to kiss me. There was so much I missed about Hank, but this was pretty close to the top. Innocent love. When he kissed me, I didn't feel like I was in danger. I didn't feel like I always had to keep aware to stop anyone from taking things a step too far. With him, I could get lost in the moment and not worry about the rest.

That's why I'll always love him.

I snaked my hands into his soft locks, savoring the small moment we decided to steal for ourselves. He was just as sweet as I remembered, his lips more than generous, and his touch kinder than anything I'd known. But, of course he had changed. He had truly become 'Beast'. As we kissed, his nails dug into my hips, he pressed me hard into the wall behind me, and this deep growl reverberated through his chest, through me. It was positively addicting. I was smiling against his lips and I felt his fangs, which was totally hot, but that meant he needed a dose soon.

"Hank..." I breathed, pulling away from him for a moment. "Your fangs are -"

"I'll take an extra dose later." He practically growled as he recaptured my lips in a heated frenzy.

_I don't know who this Hank is, but I like him._

This primal urge I felt wafting off of him, it made girls like me swoon. It reminded me of the first night we kissed at the Peppermint Lounge, how he just sauntered up to me with such bravado I was floored. Me, the illustrious Synergy, couldn't find the words for a moment that night. I just wanted Hank to take me into that alley, shove me up against a wall, and kiss me until I forgot my name. Of course, I didn't get that back then, but I most certainly was getting it now. I'm sure he'd been on dates since we last met, there's no way he got this good at kissing without some extra help. He was worshiping my mouth like it was the only thing he'd ever wanted to do in his 30 years. His teeth nipped at my lower lip and it just - I was absolutely melting.

Hank was halfway to snaking his hands up the back of my shirt, the saucy minx, when I suddenly felt a sense of panic near the basement. Increased heart rates across the board, rapid movements, something was going down. And hoping that Logan and Charles hadn't been caught, that meant that Erik had been freed and the fun was mostly definitely about to begin.

"Shit." I muttered to myself, panting heavily. "As much fun as this has been, they might need me after all."

Displeased, Hank pulled away from me and nodded.

"Let's continue this later, yeah?" I winked, resting a hand on his forearm as he let go of my hips.

When someone walked by our hiding spot, Hank quickly fumbled for a syringe of mutant serum in that fanny pack of his. He jabbed it into his arm before his mutation got to the point where he'd start turning blue and his sudden skin condition would be really hard to explain to the folks at the front desk when we walked out. Regretting that he had to do this in the first place, I quickly kissed him on the cheek, whispered something private into his ear, and dematerialized on the spot. For the time being, Charles and Logan needed me. Like people needing me was a new concept. Seriously, these morons couldn't do anything without me.

* * *

**Author's Note: Haha! Chapter Five out quick as a flash! Chapter Six is halfway done because it was originally meant to finish off this chapter, but the makeout session seemed like a good stopping point! Sorry for sorta short chapter, and sorry for poopy romance, I'm not good at it. I'm much better at making my characters miserable. Sorry. I'm working on it. Thank you for the reviews, friends! Keep them coming because they always leave me grinning like an idiot!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Colliding Synergy**

"_For purposes of action nothing is more useful than narrowness of thought combined with energy of will._" - Henri Frederic Amiel

* * *

It didn't take me long to find my two fellow mutants. It's not like there was anyone else soaked in mutant energy skulking the hallways beneath the Pentagon. At least - I sincerely hoped there wasn't. Because then we'd have a whole different slew of issues on our plate and - distracted, sorry. Charles and Logan were almost to the elevator that accessed Erik's jail cell, they just had to clear out the two guards and the crew of Chef Boyardee blocking their passage and they were home free. Without missing a beat, I materialized behind them, cracking my neck and righting my shirt before letting my presence be known. _Hank really did a number on me._

"Peter's got Erik, I'm pretty sure." I told them out of the blue, almost causing them to jump a mile out of their boots. "And I hope you know what to do to get rid of the two guards stationed in the kitchen."

Charles nodded after getting his heart rate back into rhythm. "I'm going to have a chat with them."

I couldn't help but snort. "You're much less convincing without your telepathy, I'll have you know."

"She's got a point." Logan smirked.

"Just - follow my lead."

Then, the sprinklers went off. All thanks to my darling Hank, I assumed. That was probably going to be enough to get the civilian staff out of the kitchens, but anyone guarding Erik Lehnsherr would remain resolute until they got a call from President Nixon himself telling them to stand down. And I was right. As we pushed into the flooded kitchens, the cooks were practically running for the door.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls," Charles started, gently pushing someone out of the way and moving towards the guards, "this is a Code Red situation. We are evacuating the entire floor so that we - my associates and I can - uh, secure the prison."

I muttered under my breath, "Very smooth."

"Who are you." One guard demanded.

"We are special operations CB FB-CID," _What _"look, perhaps you didn't hear me when first I spoke but it's _imperative _that blah blah blah blah blah -"

Sorry, but I stopped listening after a certain point. Logan and I were too busy exchanging a look that said 'knocking these suckers out would be so much easier', so mid-Charles speech, we grabbed the nearest kitchen utensil and quickly dispatched of the two guards in front of us. I, armed with a tea kettle, stomped on one guard's toe and then delivered a nice clean uppercut with my weapon of choice. Logan, he just went right for the cheek with a frying pan. Easily enough, the men were unconscious and we were exchanging victory glances. Of course Charles looked less than pleased with our work.

_Like to see him do better._

"Oh, I'm sorry, were you finished?" Logan asked sarcastically.

"They'll be fine." I smirked. "More than likely."

After grasping that his job was done, Charles knelt down and retrieved the guards keys.

"Good job handling the cookery." I complimented my new friend.

"You could've done better." He obviously teased.

I let out a short laugh. "Excuse me if I haven't had an infinite number of years to perfect my tea kettle fu."

"You calling me old?"

I snorted. "You live to see well past the turn of the century. And you look like you're 50 something right now, what makes the most sense?"

He chuckled while Charles unlocked the elevator, making sure that Erik and Peter wouldn't have an issue getting past the doors. Once that was finished, he let out a visible sigh, turning back to us with a defeated look on his face.

"I'm sorry, I'm just - not very good with violence." He explained. Like I didn't already know that.

_Ping_.

The elevator doors opened and surprise surprise, it was Erik.

"Charles?" He asked, probably more than a lot confused.

There wasn't even a moment to think, Charles just wound up and punched Erik in the jaw with all he had.

"Shit!" I laughed. "Not very good with violence my ass."

While Charles nursed his injured hand, Erik was chuckling on his new spot on the floor. "Good to see you too, old friend. You too, Max."

I smirked and offered him a helping hand. "I'm not nearly as mad as him, but I still don't like you."

"Fair enough." He conceded. "I have to admit, you look far less dead than I recall you being."

I shrugged, giving him a cocky grin. "You shouldn't get yourself thrown in prison, because you missed a crazy ten years."

Over my shoulder, I could hear Charles stewing. _After all these years you're still mad at him? Give it a rest already, Charles._

"You're - walking!" Erik suddenly exclaimed, obviously quite happy for his friend.

"No thanks to you." Charles spat back.

_Touchy._

"You're the last person in the world I expected to see today." Erik admitted.

"Believe me," Charles started, shaking his head, "I wouldn't be here if I didn't have to. If we get you out of here, we do it _my _way. No killing."

"I second that." I decided to add in the case that Erik wasn't threatened by Charles's verbal lashing. I'm far more violent than the professor, and not against electrocuting people who deserve it.

Erik grinned. "No helmet. I couldn't disobey you even if I wanted."

"I am never getting inside that head again." Charles practically hissed through his teeth. "I need your word."

Curious to what the hell was actually going on, Erik hesitantly nodded his compliance. The metal head was many things, traitor, asshole, fuckwad, but he definitely wasn't stupid. He thought something was fishy about his rescue, and he was right. This whole plan stunk worse than Collin's duffel bag after a two year deployment. Too many ways this plan could go wrong. Now we had to figure out how to get out past the army of guards coming to storm the kitchen.

"Guys, security's almost here." I figured I'd mention before we were swarmed.

"Well that won't be an issue, will it Charles?" Erik smiled at his old friend.

_Oh if you only knew._

Their steps could be heard out in the hall, so I decided to put my battle face on. Sadly being covered in water meant that electricity was a no go. No better way to be than electricity.

"Nobody move!" A guard shouted as he pushed into the kitchens with his plastic gun trained on us. "Hold it right there!"

For a few moments, we didn't do anything. Erik was the only one who could control the objects in the room and he was waiting for Charles to make the first move.

"Charles?" He asked.

"Don't move!" Another guard yelled. "Hands up, or we _will _shoot!"

"Freeze them Charles -"

"I can't." Charles finally admitted.

"Hands up!" Someone else shouted.

Upon realizing that Charles wouldn't be able to end this conflict peacefully, Erik did the only thing he knew. He took control over all of the metal in the kitchen and was probably prepared to slaughter everyone standing in our way. As Charles moved to stop him, I trained my eyes towards Peter who was starting to move incredibly fast. My eyes focused past sound, past the things that normal humans could comprehend with their eyes, and I finally saw what they couldn't. Time slowed around me, even Peter looked slow to me, so I pulled back. I couldn't quick see things moving at the speed of light, but things moving at the speed of a neurotic teenager. I pulled up beside him, waving and shocking him entirely.

"You can see me?" He asked, a grin creasing his face.

I nodded. "I'm electricity, I move at the speed of light. What do you think my vision is."

Smiling like a damn fool, Peter and I got to work. The guards had already fired their bullets, so all we needed to do was relocate their pathways. Of course, with an entire room of jackasses with guns unable to move (effectively), how could we resist? Peter quickly put on his headphones and took off towards the wall to our right. He was running on the wall, so I decided to walk through the mess that Erik left us with. Soup flying left and right, knives and ladles dangling midair, it was actually pretty cool. I took a pot of stew that hadn't been too disturbed and I turned it over one of the guards. He'd have a pretty good smelling bath once I returned to my normal speed.

Peter was busy doing something quite similar, knocking their caps off, chucking plates at them, crossing their arms so that the kick from their guns would cause each other to get smacked in the face, it was beautiful. Wedgies, positioning them so they'll punch themselves, I even knocked one off their feet. Slow motion antics might've become my new favorite sort of pranks. After he stole a hat and I snagged a floating baguette, we realized that we hadn't put our friends out of harms way. Of course that's at the bottom of our list of things to do. Our priorities were totally solid.

So, we finally took care of that, four bullets all relocated, and we returned to our normal speeds. Logan, Erik, Charles, they were in for a show. Security guards flipping in the air, falling on their asses, getting hit in the face, and get doused in a nice beef broth. Our work was done. We high fived to celebrate our masterpiece, and our friends just looked around in utter confusion. Finally realizing what happened, they shook their heads and started filing out of the kitchen.

"Nice job, you two." Logan commended as he passed, patting us both on the shoulder.

"Damn straight." I smirked, swinging my arm around Peter's neck, giving him a noogie, and following everyone else out.

_It was a job well done._

* * *

**Author's Note: Told you this was almost done. Tada! Kitchen scene with a little bit of Max sprinkled on top. There's nothing better. Thank you for the reviews! They make me so happy! Hopefully the next chapter will be out soon, probably by Wednesday. There will be some Hank and Max goodness soon! *purrs* You better get ready for it.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Colliding Synergy**

"_Who, except the gods, can live time through forever without any pain?_" - Aeschylus

* * *

After we got the rest of the way out of the Pentagon we made like a handful of bats straight outta hell and headed for the airport. Really wished that I could've stayed to screw around with some old historical crap, but it was for the best. Breaking a man out of the most secure prison in the country would probably warrant some attention from the government. And attention was something that we really did not need at that exact moment. Which is also probably why we ditched Peter. The kid wasn't exactly what one would call "subtle". I mean, I would know. I'm not subtle either. Though, in retrospect, I really have no idea why we didn't drop him off at home _before _we went to the airport. Logan's car wasn't really meant for six people.

I digress.

Saying goodbye to Peter was actually pretty rough, and I hadn't even known him for more than a day. He was such a - I think good it too strong a word here - useful kid, and as much as I wanted the little asshat to keep me company, he had a few more years left in him before he needed to deal with the mutant shit show happening around him. He was probably the same age as me when I got wrapped into this mess. So I hugged his scrawny ass and did the one thing I could for him. I gave him my parents phone number.

"If you're ever in trouble, call this number and ask for me." I explained while writing on his hand with marker. "I won't be there, but they'll know how to get ahold of me."

Looking at my poor penmanship, he snorted. "What if it's trouble I can get out of?"

"Then you give them hell on your way out." I remarked. "See you around, kid."

Charles went on to say his goodbyes after that, Erik and Logan too, so I zapped onto the plane where Hank was already getting ready for take-off to keep myself occupied. Never have been good with the touchy-feely emotional goodbye bits. Even when my brothers were set to deploy they'd only get a single hug from me, and maybe a sharp jab to the shoulder. If I was feeling nice. I'd much rather bottle everything all inside until they fester into improper coping mechanisms and long term emotional issues topped with the inability to maintain healthy romantic relationships for the rest of my life.

Spoiler alert, it happens. Just, stick around for a bit.

Thinking back, I have no freaking clue how the three of them managed to scrounge up an actual airplane on such short notice, or with any sort of notice at all. We weren't government, and while Charles was loaded, I don't think he was loaded enough to just buy a plane on a whim. Maybe he was, I just seriously doubted it. Best not to think too much about it lest I fry my brain more than it already has been.

Sighing, I walked up the length of the plane, throwing my bag into one of the seats. To ensure that I didn't "accidentally" electrocute anyone, I was extra careful to keep myself far _far _away from Charles's stuff. Deeming that the five seats between us would suffice, I dematerialized and appeared right next to Hank in the cockpit. When he turned around at the slight _zap _sound, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

"_Max!_" He exclaimed with his hand over his head. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

I'll admit, I considered it... I'm kidding.

"Not at this exact moment, no." I smirked, plopping down in the co-pilots seat and hanging my legs over the arm rest. "But what harm could a little excitement do?"

Quickly he turned his attention back to the controls, but I saw that smile twitching at his lips. "A lot. Now, let me focus, I need to make sure everything's calibrated."

A snort bubbled out of me as I pulled out one of the many manuals. "You're gonna check it at least five times and you're still not gonna be satisfied."

"That's -" Hank started to protest, his mouth fluttering open and shut. "That's not _entirely _accurate."

I leveled him a look of disbelief. "How long have I known you? You think I don't know how you tick yet?"

"I know you do." He muttered, trailing off and delving back into his toys.

For a while, I stopped paying attention to what he was doing. I was too busy looking out the cockpit and watching Peter chat up Charles. Eventually, Hank finished up and headed out to say his own goodbyes, so that left me to my own devices for a bit. Now, that's honestly a very dangerous thing. When I'm alone, I think, and when I think, I remember.

_"Breathe, Maxine. This will only hurt for a moment."_

There was a sting at the base of my skull, radiating through my skin and down my spine. But not really. It was just a memory. Still, I was itching the spot unconsciously. There's something about systemic torture that just - it stays with you. You just can't shake it off no matter how hard you try. And who do you tell? There isn't really a therapist for me, and my friends are all just going to worry about me. So, I tough it out. I rubbed the scars on my wrists and left the cockpit, finding the empty seat across from Logan for the time being.

He barely looked up at me over the bourbon he was drinking, opting to look out the window rather than communicate with me. Which was completely fine, I was mostly eyeing the paper between us anyway. I just needed something to point my mind at. And I was halfway to picking it up when Erik walked in, reaching to do the same. Logan just extended his claws over it to stop it in its tracks. That's something I truly appreciated about Logan, we both hated Erik. It's the little things that bring us together.

"Imagine if they were metal." Erik remarked before continuing on to an unoccupied seat.

I snickered, picking up the slightly maimed paper and giving it a read. "So he could be your little puppet? I don't think that he'd appreciate that."

"Where did they dig you up anyway?" Erik asked Logan.

"You're gonna find this hard to believe." He started. "But you sent me. You _and _Charles. From the future."

The look Logan received in return was quite appropriate, Erik didn't believe a single lick of it. Like I said, it perfectly fit the situation.

"Everyone good to take off?" Hank asked innocently as he and Charles boarded the plane.

I nodded, kicking my feet up only to have Logan knock them off. "Yeah, we're good."

I kicked up my feet again in spit, and gave him a slight shock when he tried to remove them again.

"Play nice." Charles instructed, causing me to flip him the bird and then for him to sigh. "Charmed."

Moments later we were in the air, Hank getting us off the ground with ultimate ease. The man could do anything, or learn how to do it almost instantly. Hank - he's just perfect. I'm just going to have to accept that someday. He's perfect, and completely out of my league. And as we were in flight and I was swooning over Hank some more, Logan explained everything that was going on in his dark future to Erik. As I did earlier that day, I mostly ignored this part. Sure, I paid enough attention to keep myself occupied, then I almost fell asleep. Maybe I wasn't paying as much attention as I thought. Oh well.

After an extended period of time, Logan, Erik, and Charles were done talking. Then, after a very long and painfully awkward silence, they spoke some more. God, they sure do talk a lot.

"How did you lose them?" Erik asked, referring to Charles's powers.

For a brief moment, Charles didn't answer, he simply looked out the window. "The treatment for my spin affects my DNA."

The look on Erik's face, it was one of pure disgust. "You sacrificed your powers so you could walk?"

I snorted from my seat. "Wow, strange, you paralyzed him and now you're judging him for figuring out how to walk again."

"It's alright, Maxine." Charles tried to ease me, I didn't realize that I was even sticking up for him. It's just - it's natural for me. I see assholes, I want to take them down a peg. Especially if they're supremacists like Erik Lensherr.

Charles, his breath started to get shaky. "I sacrificed my powers so that I could slee -"

When his voice cracked, when he couldn't bare to look at Erik anymore, dammit, I felt for him. I've been preaching for days how much I hate him, I've been doing it for years, but there was still a Charles Xavier that was my friend, a long time ago. It was going to take some major conditioning on my part to get me to forget that.

"What do you know about it." Charles questioned, his tone harsh.

Erik scoffed. "I've lost my fair share."

"And half the time you've thrown it away." I remarked, mostly to myself, but he heard it.

"Don't pretend to know me, Max." He almost threatened. "You don't know what I've seen."

I shook my paper. "That's a two way street, Erik."

"She's right." Charles agreed. "So dry your eyes, Erik. It doesn't justify what you've done."

There's this look that Erik gets on his face that is - let's face it - borderline terrifying. Okay, it's completely terrifying. It's that look he gets right before he betrays you, I've seen it plenty of times in my life. It's that look he gets right before he kills someone right in front of you. It's that split second where you thought that everything was going perfect, only for him to ruin it. And - well, he was wearing that face in that exact moment.

"You have no idea what I've done." He nearly spat, his tone dripping with venom.

"I know that you took the things that mean the most to me." Charles said past a quivering lip.

Erik was practically laughing at Charles's struggles. "Maybe you should've fought harder for them."

"If you want a fight Erik," Charles started, standing and taking the older man by his shirt, "I will _give _you a fight!"

"Sit down -" Logan tried to intervene in the back.

"No way." I chuckled. "I hate both of them, I want to see them punch each others lights out."

Erik threw me a sarcastic look over his shoulder. "How mature of you."

"You're the one who almost started World War 3." I rebuttled, shrugging my shoulders.

"And then you abandoned me!" Charles nearly wailed. "You took her away and you _abandoned me!_"

This is where it goes to shit.

"Angel." Erik stated bluntly and randomly, and I felt that sting at the base of my skull again.

"Azazel." He continued, and suddenly my wrists began to itch.

"Emma." There was a ringing in my ear.

"Banshee."

_"Tell them I'm alright, wouldja?"_

I was laying on a metal slab, one I was becoming quite accustomed to. Around my wrists and ankles were rubber restraints, next to me was someone that used to be my best friend. I remember looking into his eyes, I remember the tears streaming his freckled face. His red hair was matted with dirt and blood, the blood was leaking out of his ears. I remember crying, I remember screaming and shouting and struggling against my restraints until my wrists bled, I remember being wheeled out of the room, I remember listening to his cry before -

"- and sisters, _all dead!_" Erik interrupted my thoughts, the plane shifting beneath us, and I was already out of my seat.

In the years I'd been gone, my electrical field could do wonders. Wheeling Erik around and punching him square in the jaw was an easy feat. And, it left him looking stunned as he fell back.

"I don't want to ever, _ever_, hear you say those names, ever again." I seethed through my teeth, lights flickering around me. "You didn't care about them, you _don't _care about them, you weren't there for them either. To you - we're all just fodder for your war against humanity. Each death, you make us a martyr. But you're not the one fighting, you're not the one _dying_. You've been spouting _your _vendetta, not _our _vendetta, since you took out the biggest player. You've been making this all about you! But we're not the pawns on your chessboard, Erik! I've died too many times for your fucking cause, for your "mutant supremacy" and I won't let you use the people you've put in harms way just to further _your _goals!"

The look everyone was giving me, it was pure shock, and the plane was taking a massive nosedive.

From the cockpit, Hank looked at us frantically. "Erik, Max, I need the power back, and I need the engine to not looked like a crushed tin can."

I inhaled deeply, and exhaled, effectively regulating the flow of electricity and stabilizing the plane. Everyone was still giving me a cautionary look, but I ignored them. I popped the collar of my jacket, yanked my sleeves down over my wrists, and headed towards the second cabin. I didn't need anyone worrying about me, I didn't need those looks of pity. What I needed, was a stiff drink. Sadly, there isn't a drink stiff enough for me out there.

Joy.

* * *

**Author's Note: In the spirit of finally watching Logan, I have inspiration! Also, in the spirit of actually knowing where this story is going, Dual Synergy is probably going to be scrapped. I'll integrate it into Colliding Synergy and have it be one cohesive unit. I think it'll be better in the long run. Plus, flashbacks are good to fill out chapters. Kidding, but also not. Enjoy, here we go, maybe more out while I'm on vacation, but no promises. I'm a busy chickita this week. Reviews make me eternally happy!**


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